Compartmented dishpan



July 16, 1957 R. D. GOOD 2,799,424

COMPARTMENTED DISHPAN 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Oct. 14, 1955 new INVENTOR.Robert D. Good ATTORNEY di f July 16, 1957 I R, D, GOOD 2,799,424

COMPARTMEINTED DISHPAN 7 Filed Oct. 14, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Robert D.Good FIG.6 I BY ATTORNEY United States Patent 2,799,424 COMPARTMENTEDDISHPAN Robert D. Good, Allentown, Pa. Application Uctober 14, 1955,Serial No. 540,453 2 Claims. (Cl. 2208) This invention relates to adishpan provided with compartments for detergent and rinse water andconstructed either as a rigid pan with a transverse partition or as atelescoping pan with a partition movable with one of the telescopingsections thereof.

Dishpans as conventionally constructed and as available on the marketare constituted of a suitable material, such as metal or enamel ware, inwhich various articles are to be washed. These dishpans do not makeprovision for separate compartments for washing and rinsing and,therefore, are disadvantageous and apt to be insanitary.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide acompartmented dishpan wherein washing and rinsing can be carried out inthe same pan while keeping the wash water and rinse water separated fromeach other. Another object of the invention is to provide a rigiddishpan of suitable size and shape having a central transverse partitiontherein dividing the dishpan into two compartments one of which can beused for washing and the other of which can be used for rinsing. Afurther object of the invention is to provide such a dishpan withsuitable means for lifting it and also with optional drains. A stillfurther object of the invention resides in producing a dishpan of thecharacter described, which is made in two telescopic sections with meansfor permitting such telescoping action, and means for sealing onecompartment from the other. An additional object of the inventionresides in producing a rigid or telescoping compartmented dishpan whichis simple and inexpensive in construction and which can be made in anydesired size or shape and of any suitable material. Other and furtherobjects and advantages will be understood by those skilled in this artor will be apparent or pointed out hereinafter.

In the accompanying drawings,

Fig. l is a perspective view of a compartmented dishpan embodying myinvention;

Fig. 2 is aplan View of Fig. 1 showing the optional drains in the bottomof the compartments;

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view along line 33 of Fig.1 looking inthe direction of the arrows;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a modified form of dishpan which is oftelescoping construction;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of Fig. 4 illustrating the optional drains in thecompartments, and

Fig. 6 is a transverse sectional view taken along line 66 of Fig. 4.

Referring now to the form of the invention shown in Figs. 1-3, thenumeral 10 designates, as a whole, a compartmented dishpan composed ofsides 11, ends 12, and bottom 13, fabricated from any suitable material,such as aluminum or other metal, plastic or any other suitable syntheticor artificial material or generally of any durable material which is notadversely affected by water and detergents. Dishpan 10 may be made inthe shape shown or in other shapes with square or rounded corners andwith a straight or flared top edge and also may be made in any size oras a set of a plurality of sizes. Each "ice of the ends 12 is providedwith means for lifting or carrying the dishpan, such as the elongatedapertures 14, it being understood however that I may alternativelyprovide suitable handles, if desired or preferred.

The partition member 15, preferably but not necessarily composed of thesame material as the dishpan, is disposed transversely of the dishpanmidway between the dishpan ends and extends between the sides 11 and isin snug contact therewith as well as with the bottom 13 of 0 thedishpan, thereby dividing the dishpan into two compartrnents for thecarrying out of washing and rinsing operations on dishes or any othersuitable objects or articles and in such a manner that the liquid in onecompartment is maintained separated from the liquid in the othercompartment, the transverse partition member 15 making a tight fitagainst the sides and bottom of the dishpan. For this purpose, themember 15 may either be so dimensioned that it is tightly wedged inposition or it may be sealed or permanently fixed in that position bymeans of sealing material, or brazing, spotwelding or other manner ofconnection, depending upon the particular material involved.

I have also found that under some circumstances it is desirable to beable to drain out the wash and rinse waters of either of them separatelywithout the necessity for lifting and tilting the dishpan and, for thatpurpose, as shown in Fig. 2, the bottom 13 of the dishpan is provided oneach side of the partition member 15 with a drain opening 16, which isnormally maintained in closed condition by means of a plug or stopper 17which can be readily removed for draining purposes and replaced asrequired. This draining feature also has the advantage that theindividual compartments of the dishpan can be flushed out and rinsedseparately or whenever desired and the compartments refilled with freshwater.

It will be noted from these figures, also, that the transverse partitionmember 15 is of less height than the dishpan itself, so that partitionmember 15 terminates a little below the upper edges of the dishpan sides11. This, I have found to be desirable and advantageous as itfacilitates the moving of dishes or other articles or objects from onecompartment to another for successive washing and rising operations,especially if the space above the dishpan is limited, as is frequentlythe case where the dishpan is placed in a sink beneath faucets.

Thus, in the form of the invention shown in Figs. 1-3, dishes or otherarticles or objects can be washed with any suitable detergent in onecompartment and then quickly .and readily transferred to the othercompartment'for rinsing, and all with a minimum of work and movement .ofthe dishes or-the like and while maintaining the liquids in thecompartments separated so that the wash water does not contaminate therinse water. This arrangement has the still further advantage that,where the supply of hot water is limited, the amount of hot water neededfor rinsing is reduced or minimized.

In the modified form of the invention shown in Figs. 4-6, theconstruction is generally similar to that of Figs. 1-3 except that thedishpan is made in two telescoping overlapping sections, as there shown.Each of the sides of the dishpan is thus made in two parts 11a and 11a.Each of the side parts 11a of one section is provided near its upperedge with an elongated horizontal slot 18 which extends nearly the fulllength of the side part 11a from a point adjacent the pan end 12a to apoint adjacent its exposed edge or face 19 so as to provide forsubstantially complete telescoping of the two pan sections. Side parts11a of the other section of the pan are each provided with an inwardlyextending pin 20 having an enlarged head 21, which pins 20 and heads 21enable the relative telescoping action of the pan sections withoutpossiblity of unintended disassembly and guide the telescoping andexpanding movements of the pan sections. Deliberate disassembly ispermitted by making heads 21 removable, as by threadedly engaging pins20.

,Due to the fact that the dishpan is made in two sections which aremovable toward and from one another, the partition a in the slottedsection requires sealing means which is movable with the partition andthe slotted pan section, and for this purpose I provide a sealing strip22 of rubber or other suitable material which is co-extensive with theside and bottom edges of the partition member 15a and which bears firmlyagainst the sides 11a of the other pan section, permitting slidingmovement of the twosections while still maintaining the liquid contentsof one section separate from the other at all times and preventingliquid leakage from the dishpan at all times. The form of thecompartmented pan illustrated in Figs. 4-6 isotherwise similar to thatof Figs. 1-3 except that pan end 12a is provided at the bottom with atransverse foot or support 23 which is approximately equal in height tothe thickness of the bottom of the pan so that the pan is at all timessupported in a level position and, when the pan sections are telescoped,they rest firmly and evenly upon a supporting surface.

. The compartmented dishpan of Figs. 4-6 is used in the same manner asthat of Figs. l-3 except that the former is provided with means fortelescoping the same not only to change its length for accommodation tosinks or other spaces of different sizes but to enable the dishpan to betelescoped to relatively small size when not in use for convenience ofstorage, handling, shipment, and the like. The pan ends 12a and 12a areprovided with holding or lifting means 14a and the compartment bottomsor end walls are preferably or optionally provided with drain openings16a and plugs 17a therefor.

It will, therefore, be apparent from the foregoing that I have provideda new and highly useful form of compartmented dishpan of either rigid ortelescoping construction which greatly aids and expedites the washingand rinsing of dishes and other objects and articles, especially whereit is desirable or important for sanitary reasons to keep the wash andrinse waters separated. The invention in either of its disclosed formsis advantageous in economizing on the use of detergent and hot water. Itwill be further appreciated that the use of the present invention hasthe important advantage of reducing the time necessary for carrying outthe washing and rinsing operations as compared with the time required bythe conventional manner presently used for washing and rinsing dishes,for example, wherein the same pan has to be filled twice, first forwashing and then for rinsing with an intermediate flushing out of thestandard dishpan after washing the dishes and before rinsing them. Onefilling of my new dishpan is all that is required for both washing andrinsing. The present invention also presents advantages over the othercommon method of washing and rinsing dishes which involves washing eachdish and then holding it under a spigot or faucet, with the consequentfrequent turning 0E and on of the spigot or faucet and the considerablenumber of manual manipulations thereby required. My new compartmenteddishpan is also useful in hospitals and other institutions for alternatesoaking in or application of hot and cold liquids or wherever twodifferent types of liquids are to be used alternately or simultaneously.The invention is particularly useful in restaurants, inns and tavernswhere dishes, glassware or cutlery are to be washed in one compartmentand rinsed in a sterilizing solution in the other compartment. Thetime-saving features in these and other uses of the invention will berecognized together with the accompanying economies made possible.

The foregoing is intended as illustrative and not as limitative since,within the scope of the appended claims, details may be changed ormodified without departing from the invention.

I claim:

1. A compartmented dishpan composed of a bottom with upstanding integralsides and ends and a transverse water-tight partition in said dishpan incontact with the sides and bottom thereof and disposed intermediate theends thereof, each of the said sides being made in two telescoping partsone of which is provided with an elongated slot near its upper edge andthe other of which is provided with an inwardly projecting pin disposedin said slot, the said transverse partition being provided with asealing strip secured along its side and bottom edges and making snugcontact with the unslotted pan part to prevent liquid flow between thepan parts and to prevent liquid leakage from said dishpan.

2. A compartmented dishpan composed of a bottom with upstanding integralsides and ends and a transverse water-tight partition in said dishpan incontact with the sides and bottom thereof and disposed intermediate theends thereof, each of the side sides being made in two telescoping partsone of which is provided with an elongated slot near its upper edge andthe other of which is provided with an inwardly projecting pin disposedin said slot, the said transverse partition being provided with asealing strip secured along its side and bottom edges and making snugcontact with the unslotted pan part to prevent liquid flow between thepan parts and to prevent liquid leakage from said dishpan, each said pinhaving an enlarged removable terminal head to prevent unintendeddisassembly but to permit deliberate disassembly of said pan parts.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS471,517 Barry Mar. 22, 1892 958,857 Dennis May 24, 1910 1,302,865Selmantel May 6, 1919 1,752,137 Ahearn Mar. 25, 1930 1,801,934 PearsonApr. 21, 1931 2,712,668 Thiele July 12, 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS 8,838 GreatBritain of 1893

